Wireless devices, such as cellular telephones, are commonly used by individuals to communicate with another party. Wireless devices may use an antenna to receive a radio frequency (RF) signal. Call quality may depend on a signal-to-noise (SNR) ratio between the desired signal (i.e., the RF signal carrying information) and a noise signal. Call quality may be best when an RF signal does not pass through obstructions located between a transmitter (e.g., a wireless base station) and an antenna on the wireless device since obstructions may attenuate (i.e., may reduce) the desired signal, thereby lowering the SNR of the RF signal at the antenna.
For example, a wireless device may receive a strong RF signal when a user operates the wireless device outdoors in an open field. The same wireless device may receive a weaker signal when the user operates the wireless device inside a building since an RF signal may pass through windows, walls or ceilings of the building when traveling from a base station to the wireless device. An amplitude of the RF signal may be attenuated (i.e., may become lower in amplitude) when the RF signal passes through the windows, walls, or ceilings of the building. As a result, call quality may be degraded when the wireless device is operated in an environment where the RF signal passes through an obstruction before reaching the antenna of the wireless device.